GLASS Aims to "Deliver"

From CDC National Prevention Information Network

March 6, 2009

On Saturday night, Boston will see the launch of "Project Deliver Us," which involves two new anti-AIDS efforts: a contest to encourage youths to use the arts to talk about HIV/AIDS, and a documentary about the epidemic's effect on the city's black community. The event is sponsored by Boston Gay and Lesbian Adolescent Social Services (GLASS) and its parent organization, JRI Health.

The "ARTicipation" contest is the brainchild of Yovannys "Gio" Kenney. A Boston GLASS alum himself, Kenney feels that the lack of a youth perspective in many HIV prevention materials means they fail to connect with young people. ARTicipation will invite youths to use a range of artistic expressions -- painting, fashion design, hip-hop music, dance, fiction, and spoken word -- to get the word out about AIDS. Organizers hope the top entry will be used in a public awareness campaign. "We want people to know that this is the youth's perspective on what HIV and AIDS means to them," Kenney said.

The Saturday gathering's other component is a screening of "Deliver Us," a 30-minute documentary by Kathryn Hall. A former molecular biologist, Hall began working on "Deliver Us" while earning her master's degree in filmmaking at Emerson College. Intrigued after visiting a forum on HIV/AIDS, Hall took her camera into Boston's black community, interviewing a range of people to get their perspectives on the epidemic. Hall said she hopes the film will inspire the youths who see it to create their own AIDS-related works of art.

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Kenney and Hall have visited youth centers across Boston to drum up interest in Saturday's launch event. Hall called it "our viral response to the virus."

The Deliver Us Project launch event is Saturday from 6-7:30 p.m. at the City Year Lavin Civic Forum, 287 Columbus Ave., Boston; it is free and open to persons ages 12-29 and their families and friends. For more information, visit www.projectdeliverus.com.

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